TGIS and Happy Memorial Day weekend, everyone! Happy 2.25 years birthday to our little man!
The week went by so quickly and blurrily! Going to bed at 9:30pm doesn’t help me feel like I got a lot accomplished during the week but the Chicago trip and interrupted sleep caught up to me. This week and next week were some pretty important weeks.
This week was pivotal because the first payment for Jacob’s preschool was due yesterday. Of all the schools that I toured and had availability, we ultimately chose a preschool that was (1) walking distance for the nanny and/or me (so the nanny wouldn’t have to drive two kids), (2) Montessori. I don’t have that much experience/expertise with the Montessori way but what I did appreciate was the organized education and curriculum philosophy and the cleanliness of the school. It also happened to be the most expensive preschool that we saw in all of San Diego! And we were only sending Jacob for 3 half-days a week.
If you have a job that requires you to leave for work at 6:30am, your options for childcare, daycare and schools are limited. And even if we send Jacob to school everyday of the week, we still need someone to help us with the dropoff (100% of the time) and pickup (100% of the time while he is in a half-day program). While budgeting (my favorite activity to do), seeing how much monthly expenditure goes to childcare and then school is nutty. It makes me transiently feel pressured to work more just to afford this! I work about 4 days a week and some days are busy/slower than others but I love the day off to spend some time with Jacob and doing some me stuff especially before Dos’ arrival.
Somehow I thought it wouldn’t hurt to ask/ get in touch again with a preschool that was (1) closer to our house so literally a 5-minute walk), (2) significantly cheaper than the Montessori school, (3) verified by our friends as being a good school, (4) faith-based (we’re Catholic but this was a Presbyterian preschool). We thought, maybe there will be an opening soon at some point and we can start the process to put Dos on the waitlist for when he/she turns two. The pressure was on because the Montessori deadline was Friday and if there was no chance of us getting in, I needed to pay the first payment or else face a late fee! Paying late fees, interest charges, parking tickets kills a little part of my soul.
After a long tour and Q&A session, she tells me there is availability for Jacob for this fall! I was starting to worry that after spending 1.5 hours there, she was going to tell me there was no availability. It turns out, she considered my place in the waitlist from my initial email to her in September 2017. I never heard back from her via email or phone and I just assumed they were full, I was slightly turned off by the lack of response and then I kind of forgot about the school. I wasn’t 100% sure if I wanted to do this school but when I crunched some numbers, it was pretty obvious!
- We save $700/month !!! Seven hundred dollars!!!
- The walk is literally up the street
- Faith-based school would provide some Christian guidance
- At 2 years old, how much will Jacob be learning about read/writing/math esp at 3 hours x 3 days a week? The learning/education will have to come more from home
- This preschool has 10 students and 2 teachers in its class (vs. 16 students)
The answer seems pretty obvious, doesn’t it? Worst case scenario, we pull him out of the church preschool and start him in the Montessori preschool. We had to eat the $300 registration/application fee but we already make up for it with how much we save at the new school. Plus, this $300 maintains Jacob’s spot if we decide to send him there in the future. It made me sad to have to call the Montessori school especially since they remembered how much Jacob loved the teachers and the environment but… le sigh… we shall see how it goes.
PSA: Ladies and gentlemen, if you are even thinking about having a child, start touring schools and putting your names on the waitlist. And some schools charge $25-100 to put your name even on the waitlist! Also, some places make you tour the program before they’ll even reveal the tuition rates, availability, etc. There is high demand for schools, let me tell you, it is serious business!
This upcoming week is also a big week for us. To start, we are going on a babymoon/anniversary trip up the coast to Monterey and Big Sur. We are dividing up the trip and stopping along the way (no choice because of my bladder and minimizing risk of stir-craziness and DVTs (blood clots in the legs)). I am SO excited to see beautiful Monterey (thanks to Big Little Lies) and its aquarium!!! I never get excited about museums and things but I’m excited about this place!
Wednesday is the big day. Our 3-year anniversary, our nanny is having a urogynecological procedure, and she’ll know if her daughter gets accepted into a pre-med type program that’ll move them all out east to D.C. Talk about a not stressful week! Her definite moving if her daughter (30 years old, married, but that’s a different story) gets accepts was solidified to us a month-ish ago so I have been mentally preparing for this change. The fortunate or unfortunate timing of this could be a blessing though. The program starts July 7 so she’d move before then. My maternity leave starts August 1st though so we will have to see… Stay tuned… Talk about lots of changes coming up!
If you have a chance, please watch Ali Wong’s Baby Cobra and Hard Knock Wife stand up specials on Netflix. She is HUH-larious and the stories/jokes she makes about pregnancy, breastfeeding, postpartum life, and being a mom/wife is right on!!! Instead of napping when Jacob napped, I watched these and I’m so happy that I did!
How did you and your family decide on daycare/schools for your little one(s)?
On the bright side, I am on vacation!!! We are going to have a wonderful time exploring this must-do trip! Have a wonderful and safe Memorial Day weekend!!!
Trust Me, I'm a Doctor Mom 
Frances!! Wow you had a busy stressful week! But man are things looking good! Great job locking down a school! I know it was super stressful for me to get Arden into a daycare at 4.5 months old. We got on the wait list and paid to reserve a spot at LePort Montessori 4 months before she was born. That’s crazy!! Imagine if patients paid to lockdown an appointment with a doctor 4 months before the appointment! I think you nailed it with the importance of touring multiple schools to see what would be a good fit for you and your child. Have a terrific vacay!!! Btw, I’m so glad you saw Ali Wong’s comedy shows. So perfect and RIGHT!
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You are way on top of things, Kris! Did Arden get into the Montessori daycare? I really like the Montessori philosophy the best but with all the unknowns coming up, convenience is key! How are you doing back at work? I’m sure you are kicking booty!!! XOXO
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